Internal combustion rotary engine



:s sheets-sheet l Niv wir MI, h -lv /Whlnlf l.. \m.. :.wlwJilnI. wma M kN NJ N@ m mM\ N3 w@ Q mw n mw M NQ/ Sept. 13, 1932. R. J. MEYER INTERNAL COMBUSTI-ON ROTARY ENGINE Filed April 19. 192e ,FE-au PHJ BY WMM l/ I i v ATTORNEY.

Sept.'l3, 1932.A R. J. MEYER INTERNAL coMBUsToN ROTARY ENGINE Filed April .19, 1929 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY.

Sept- 13, 1932- R. J. MEYER INTERNAL COMBUSTION ROTARY ENGINE 3 Sheets-Shes?l `5 Filed April 19, 1929 v INVENTOR. a. pH .ff-Vaya? ATTORNEY.

rar-@med sept. 13, 1932 f InrERNAL veorlmn's'rron no'rAnYfnNGrNn Y application :nea Apr11`19,

ThisV invention relates to rotary internal Y combustion engines 4and particularly to cn-V4 gines of that character wherein a compressor 'is mounted upon the sameshaft as the motor, 'the compressorbeing driven by the motor and lactingtoicomp'ress thechargeand force it `into the motor. y

One ofthe objects of the present invention lis to provide V an engine of this character wherein a definite and measuredamount of charge Vwill be delivered to the motor for` each Aezlrplosionto-thus secure an evenrunnmgof theengine and the delivery of a constant powerjoutput. Y Y Another object-is to provide for a more per-feet balancing ofthe pressures on opposite ends of the rotorsof the motor and compressor to'thus reduce friction and balance thrust. F1 Y 1 Still another object is to provide outwardly s vingingpistons on the rotors of the compressorand motor which are so constructed that the centrifugalforce acting thereon is counterbalanced to thus reduce the wear and tearon the 'pistons and on the wall of the 'piston `passages and in this connection to equalize the pressure againstythe advance face of the piston at alltimes and make provision for Vthe equalization of the pressure within the piston chamber and behind'the 4piston, the balance so secured, not bcigj;

fected by thewear on'the piston.

A further object is to provide means, when the" car upon which the engine is mountedis being driven down a hill, for instance, -whereby the iowv of fuel to the engine is cut offV and whereby back pressure `may be built up in the manifold, this back pressure acting as a brakeor check to the rotation of the compresser, thus acting as a brake or check upon ,thefrotation of the vmotor and rapidity of movement of thefcar. 1 Another object is to provide? an engine of K this character in which the manifold is used asa Vpressure chamber l,within which pressure is being constantly maintained by .the

compressor. y

)ther andmore detailed objects will-lap.-

Vpear in the'course of the description,

r192e. seriainu, 356,541.

Y Figure is :a manifold 12 tothe body 13 of the motorl section lon thefline of 'Y Figure 6 is a perspective view of one of the 4 pistons i te 'an enlarged fragmentaryeectional view on the same plane'as the nsection in Figure 3,: showing in detail theforma- .tionbf the piston Figure l8 'is aVv like .view to Figure but showing-the pistonin its closed position with the periphery'of the rotor in Contact lwith the inner face of the casingandrjust after the piston has passed theinlet. port.

Referring to these drawings, it will be seen from Figure 1` that the compressor A and the engine Bj or motor are mounted side by side, the rotors ofthe compressor: andof' the lmotorbeing mounted upona common shaft 10 which, in case they engine is'mounted upon 'ab 'a motorcar, is operatively` connected,` of Y course, to the driving wheel of the vehicle.

The body 6311of the compressor is approxif mately annularA in form and is connected Mounted upon the shaft lwithin the body 13. ofthe motorie the rotor 14 which is di'sposedA eccentrically to the-inner face ofthe body 13 so thatat onepoint the rotor touches the body Vand a space is left between the rotor andthe inner face ofthe-rotor chamberlforl rotorrlI ,Y l Mounted uponthe ends of the rotor arethe battle disks 15,these `loaliie disksbeing-mounted beingdisposed` around the peripheries Vof the `baiile'disks as will' be later stated. The body the remainder of the'circumference of vthe 1 upon the .endsof the hubsjof the rotor as v. Y vshown in Figure 1 and the body 13 is recessed 'at 16 to receive these baffle" disks, packings leo 13 is closed at one end by means of the head 17 which is formed with the marginal flange 18 oset from the central portion of the head so as to fit against the end of the body and ,againstthe end of the correspondingbaiiie disk 15. Y

`The central portion of this head 17 is bushed as at 19, the bushing 19 `surrounding the shaft 10. The central portion of the head 17 is Valso outwardly extended and exteriorly screw-threaded as at 20, `theinr'ier ifaceof f this extension being spaced from the drive shaft tor provide for'the'reception' of a packing 21, and a packing gland22, this packing gland being heldin place by means of `the packing Anut 23, there being a binder nut 24 engaging the' screw-threads of the eX- -tension and bearing against the end of the packing nut. An oil cup 25 yor other lubricatingmeans is provided for lubricating the bearingbushing 19 forthe shaft 10. j

The opposite endof the body 13- or rotor easing-is--closedby a head 26 which'is ,formed Vwith a central extension 27, this portion being"V eXteriorly screw-threaded for the reception ofa screw-threaded cap 28. The packing gland 29 is Vdisposed within this cap' and has a beveled face bearing against'the `packing 30 disposed within the extension 27. A spring 31 immediately surrounds the shaft 10 and is disposed within the packinggla'nd and bearsagainst the flanged inner end of the packing gland sov as to constantly urge thispacling toward the head 26. The head '26:atits periphery is formed with aninwardly offset lange 32 whichbears against the body 13 and with the oppositely extending angular flange 33 which constitutes in effect a head for the rotor of the compressor. A n oil duct 34 .connected to' a suitable source of oil extends down through the head 26 and-'discharges lubricating oil upon the packing30 so as to lubricate the shaftbearing;

The heads 17 .and '.26 are :held to thebody1'3 by means-'of the usual screws 35..

' f 1 It will be seen that -theseheads26 and 17 constitute the; outer walls lof fthe annular re? Ycessesflt in which'thebalilefdisks 15 are .disposed and that the annular chambers 36 and 37 are formed between the heads yWand :26

andthe baffle disks v15. Rreferably transverse passages'38 extend through the rotor 1 4;and lthrough 'the baffle vdislrs yopen inte these Vpressure chambers l`36 :and 37 so as .to -equali-zethe 'pressure at fopposizte ends `of 'the rotor. A y e f Y .Y *The perpheries of thejbalecdisks are rabbeted so as to provide a mediallyY disposed ,circumferential-lyextending rib 39.5. @Disposed on each side of each rib are the sealing rings A40 -ann-ularjin cress section las shown in'Figure 1, the fheads^17 land26 :bearing against f theeutermost sealingrings. y I vAs wil-l be seen A`from yFigure 2, 'fthe rotor chamber for the motor B5, which rotor chamber is designated is disposed eccentricallyl withrelation to the shaft 10 and with relation to the rotor.- Extending inward through i the body 13 is the fuel supply passage 41 which communicates with themanifold 12. The rotor is provided at two or more points in its circumference with a transversely eX- tending pocket or combustion chambery 42 shown as approximately rectangular in cross section and disposed inadvance of each combustion -chamber 42' or pocket is the arcuate piston43. `lllachvpiston is formed with an arcuateweb 44 which projects beyond the portion 43 beyondthe rear face of the piston and its forwardedge is connected with or formed integral with--a transverse rock shaft or trunnion 45. This shaft 45 is mounted in bearing bushings-,46 fermedinv-the disks 15 and each `shaft atits outer end projects beyond the corresponding dislr15 into the air chamber -or pressure chamber 36 'formed in theA head 17.

Lubricant ducts conduct oil or other lubricantteft'he bushings 46.- `TVVithin -the chamber 3 6, each shaft 45 carries upon it a sleeve 47 which embracesthejshaftjand which isA formed withfa b`alance-we'ighte48 which eX- vtends general-ly speaking' inj the direction traveled of the rotor. The sleeve 47vis pinned upon the shaft 45 or otherwise rigidly engagedfw-it-h the shaft to rock therewith. The

weight 48 is formed with ears 49'and connected to these ears is a rod 5() extending through a support 51 formed upon .the end of the rotor. Surrounding the rod is a spring. 52A Y which `operatively bears against `the. ends of Vthe ears so as to -urge'these--ears 49 voutward* and urge the piston composed of theparts 43 and 44 against the peripheral face ofthe v weighted by .weight 48 normally urge they -pis- -r `ton outward -aga-instithe.i-nner face of the rotor chamber lbut lthat the jpistonmayvbe forced inward until the 'curved web .44 is flush with the 'curved peripheral face of the rotor 14, the extension of the webA 44`constituting a nose-55 which when the piston is closed bears ilo against a shoulder' formed in thewallof the recess k53. The web 44 is apertured at 57 'to `equalize lthe pressure within the recess or pocket 453 with ythe pressure on the forward 'face' of the piston;` This nose `55 isavery irnportant feature of the pistonv and the action vof this nose in controlling the piston movement will be fully described later; e

lt will beseen that as a piston' approaches not. be described.

that portion 58 .of the body lkjvvhich'con-sti'vtutes an abutment, thepistonlwill be grad- -ually forced. inward xuntil it lies flush TWith the periphery as before stated so that l*it* may pass the-abutment.' The 'perforations 57, it nWill befnoted from Figure/f1 arel disposedf-laterally of `the vpassage Also that` the highly rcompressedwcharge"in the"inlet `passage 41 cannot pass into the recess'53 and thus'fill this recess With highly `compressed gas. Thus as a pistonis passing the abutment 58, the apertures 'are closed Vas shown in Figurel. Disposed justin `advance of the abutment 58 is a firing chamber 59;.providedwith1a usual spark terminal 60 carried by thespark plug 61, which plug'v extends outward tothe exterior ofthebody 13 and is connected, of course, toV the usualfig'nition circuit. :The inner faceof. the firing chamber is formed to itp'against the rotor.Y The peripheral face of the'body 1,11 of the rotorchainber is formed with an exhaust' opening 62 Which'is disposed v rearward of the abutment 58 through which the exhausted gases-:are discharged.: The rotor ofthe compressor is constructed in practically the sameimanner as the rotor of the engine or motor and thevbody 63 of the compressor hasV practically vthe same form aas the`body13 of thelmotor., The inner face of the rotor chamber a for the compressor is eccentric Vtothe shaft 10 so that .the rotor 64 bears-only. at oneyportion 'of its periphery against the Wall ofthe rotorchamber, that is, it bears against the abutment 65 Whose face is concavelycurved to `'iitilthe periphery of the rotor and this abutmentisjformed -with the outlet passagey 66 leadingto ,the-manifold 12. This passage is Vformed 'Withjthe seat 67 against which the valve68 normally bears, this Valve being mounted in the'usual spider, and-being urged to. itsseat by a spring. 1

The rotor 64; carries at `each endthe baiile disks 69 extendinglintothe recess '7,O1formed in the body'63." The inner 4end of the rotor chamber which is enclosed by the bodyz11 is formed by the head 26, the annular chamber "(2a formedv by the iiange 3320i? thishead-constituting `apressur'e chamber at one end of the compression rotor.r The-outer endof the' rotor chamber for the compressor is ,formed .by the head ljwhich hasA practically the same form as the head 17 ypreviously described fand'it is' formedwvith a stuiiingboX iof like character t-o that ofthe headjfl' and need TheV head- `71, therefore, encloses an annular pressure. chamber' 72 which is equivalent to the Apressure "chamber 36` previously described. `The' rotor 64:1 is formed with transversel passages 73,'leading lfrom" the pressure chamber@a tothe pres'- sure chamber 72 and being the equivalent of the'passages 38 previously described@` The pistons 74 of the lcompressor-arelofexactly the same type as previously ldescribed forthe 1 motor and each is mounteduponthe trans- 'abutment 65. As soon a's'they pass the abutfron'ithe' Lport "62. and :when theycreach theverse vrock shaft 75, thisrock shaftextending l" through-suitable bearingsin'the'disk 69 and carrying at 'their outer.l ends the sleeves 76,'

.tonsrar'e also provided with the nose 74a cor; responding. to the' nose. or'extension 55 on the pistons 43; i TheI outervvall` of Veach piston-is also provided. With a port v57previouslyidescribed'for the pistons 43. Therefore, itis believedfthat these pistonsneednot be more specifically described; As the pistons ap# proachthe labutmentf, the :pistons arecompressed by contact With Vthe eccentric-:Wall of the piston'chamber so .that theyV pass the n'themotor, the pistons', `as they move to- Ward the abutment, .fo'rcev the exhaustout abutment :58, the combustion chamber 42 fills the firing chamber59, `the gas. is ignited and the expanding gas bears againstthe rear face of the piston 42 in advance ofthe firing chamber, turning 'the rotor in a clock-Wise direc'- tion. This ino-tion of the shaft 10 transmitted tortheirotor ofthe compressor causes the pistons to move ina clockwise direction to. l

:the gas Afrom passingreverselyinto the com-v Y presson Y a Disposed .in the manifold 121is La vcut-.off l`valve Slwhich may sbe inthe formV ofa globe -valve and Which mayact as a throttlevalve controlling the flow "of gas to the intake opening 41 of the motor. If'this valve 81 be turned to cut off the passagel ofi-gas to the motor, then as the compressionrotorrevolves,

gas Willfbe forced intofthe manifold 1:2 arid theigreater the pressure Withinthe manifold `12, the greaterzwill be the pressure of the gas 'acting against the valve 68 and lthus-the greater Wilflbe .the back ,pressure on the rotor 5 64: Which lWill thus act to retardthe` motion ofthe Shaft 10 so that when a car` is running down hill or under any other circumstances fofoperation or Where a braking action is desired-it iso'nly necessaryto'cutf of the valve 81in .order to secure thisv braking action. -A safetyfvalve is provided in themanifold to prevent the pressure from building lup toa dangerous .degree. This is 'one of the advanjta'g'es of this-construction. f -t'f Particular attention -is calledtothe loca- .tion .of .the cheek *valve r68. This check valve isi disposed at the lentrance of the manifold 1 2, thatfis, it closes the port-67 into the :com-

pnesson .As a consequence, this valve is vnot Ysubjectedto either .the force of the 'explosion nor tto `fthesburning action due to ignition, the firingchamberor space :within which igni.-

tion occurs beingentirely cut volf from the manifold 12 by the .abutment 58 so that no 'products :of'fcombustion can pass into rthe manifold .or 'in/'any way afect thevalve. It

isnecessary that'the valve bedisposedl at the. inlet endlof the manifoldl2 for the reason that if it is'disposed .atany other Vportion of-the. manifold l2, either intermediate its length :or at the outlet of the manifold l2, there-would ,be a constant expansion of the lgas Vafter a-measuring chamber 4201i the motor had passed the opening of the manifold and cut oft this -back expansion, exerting backxpressure-upon.the compression which,

. Aof course, is-fnotidesired. 'This valve 68,

therefore, isa retaining valve acting to re- ;.ta'inthe pressure. built up within the manifold 12 byfthecompressor.y As before stated, if

4,the cut-o valve 8l be closed, pressure will build up in the inletend of the manifold 12 'and this pressure will ybe retained in there by the yvalvey :68. so that the pressure againstthe vvalve will'be sufciently great to impede or y vretardthe motion of the .compressor and thus act as a brake. 1 f

Y A .further advantage of my construct-ion 'lies Vin the fact thatfthere is equality of vpres- Asure on both sides of the baffle disksY 69 or 15.

' which form .theends of the rotors. This prevents end thrust and consequent friction.

Y By providing equalization ports in the.

webs of the pistonsas shown atV 57, the pressures 4within the'piston recesses Vof the rotors Yare ,equalized :with thejpressures behind 'so lthat whenthe pistons are forced outward,

Award against the peripheries of `the rotor chambers when the engine is starting and before centrifugal forcehas been createdsufli-f '-,cient to urge the pistons outward against the "peripheries of `the rotor chambersfhut when this centrifugal force has been created, the 4coun'terw'eight von each. piston trunnion acts to'counterbalance the centrifugal force which would'urgethe forward edge of the piston outward Aagainstg the periphery .of 'the rotor chamber and :thus these counterweights 47 and 47 7 act to balance 'the centrifugal force on v ythe pistons. Attention -is particularly called tothe fact fthat Leach'of the pistons isengaged byaxseail block ormetal seal-.such kas is shown :at 5 4 'inFigure 'i This I regard .aslian lim- Yportant feature of invention for the reas`o n!.that .sealblock acts to prevent Huid pressure .bearing against t'heface lof the piston beyond the block andxis set into a recess in the fbodylof. the rotor and. `doesv not move with .the piston itself.y

' IThis:results'in the distance between .the i sealing block and the orner-or free endof the piston always remaining the same, whereasif this `seal ibloekwere .mounted-:upon thev piston itself, it -`would .mo-ve outward' as :the Vvpiston wore and there woueldlbe-,a greater pressure,

--thereforeuponthat portion :of :thezpiston lyingfoutward of the; center yof pressure than there wouldfbe, upon thatp ortion of the-piston lying inwardthereof. The-directionof .pressure which is shown Agenerally lbyx a line v Y-Y in Figure l3 and in Figures 7 and 8 minst interseetthe' middle ofthe piston half waygbetweenlthe sealsiblock and the :nose-or free edge of thepi'stonzandthisline ofpressure will always .be at this point provided the same block is. carriedby-the rotor whereas were lthe seal block carried by the piston itself, .the pressure, as thefpiston wore, would be Vgreaterat the Vouter end .of the .piston'than at t-he inner rend.- A

It wll be seen that my construction permits the seal rings which' are used onv bothV ofthe rotors and whic'hare designated LO'in Figure 1 yto be readily vput in place or removed or replaced. The inner rings Vare :first put in place,-then the baffle plate or disk-'15.01'A 69, then the outer'section for seal ring Vand then the head 17er 7l is put in plaoe, as the case may be. rated from each other so'as to adjust themselves properly to expansion '.or contraction caused by heat orjcold.

Preferablyoil ducts will be provided leading to all ofthe vbearings eitherfor the shaft 10 orV tothe sealing rings for thefbaiile disks andi preferably these oil! cups will beconnectedto a single source of foil, though I do not .wish to be limitedtol this as the particular lubricating system forms no vpart of` my invention. i Y

It is obvious that theprincipleo'f this invention may "be applied to enginesof many different characters without -departing from the spirit of the invention.

The provisiono-f the transversely extending pressure equalizingfpassages throughthe rotorsof .both the compressor and the motor I believe to beof great Vimportancev for. the

reason that thus', no matter how greatthe leakage may be, if there is any, on one sidefor theother ojf the valvefrom the compression chamber orv from the explosion chamber, this leakage Tof gas around 'the baille plates will These seal rings are slightly sepa-V kso not act to force either rotor over against one l or thel other of the 'heads confronting the ends general direction of movement oit the piston.- This is necessary'inlorder that this edge face shall'notcause'the pressure against it to exert either a-n inwardly directed torce'orY an outwardly directed force on the piston.`

irime further romania unless' the nose' 74e (or noseI 55 )'does extend to the point lof `intersection with the'line W-W, the piston jwilll kick-in or`V close with 4a slap asesoon Y 'soV as, the piston reaches thek point where the peripheryfof'the casingv is'` eccentric tothe rotor andcommences to converge toward the rotork and Vthat if the-,nose extends beyond l this line WV-W, the piston will bear unduly against the wall of the pistonfehainber.' This is nota matterof. gues'swork'with me, but

has been provenin -actualpractice, though this-angle of 221/50 in the plane WA-W but this changel is very slight `and does not', in effect, alter this a-nf ,letol any appreciable de gree'.y v Y Y It wil-T be seenl that in this engine of' mine,

as beforeY remarked, thecounterlweight acts toy counteract the outward thrust d'ue tocen# triiugalE force While the' nose and the curved face-of the pistonI act toequalizethe thrust on the Vpiston so that the' pistonV will be perfectly l balanced with its nosebearing slightly against the periphery othe' piston'v chamber; Bfecausethe engine operates atv variable speeds, as all engines do, itv is necessaryto-k provide- .a counterwelght for the-piston 1-n order that` the centrifugal forceiyexerted high revolutions shall ,not urge the piston f with too great force aga-inst the wall of'gthe esv piston 'chamber with consequent` unduel wear. ltvis to be further noted in this-connectionI h that with myl construction wherein th'efpafck-l ing 54@ is carried' by the-wall of the recess, wear upon the free end of the piston makes no dif'- 'erence with regard to the proper balancing 'ofV the piston. Nomatterhow much the piston may wear,'there is always anequality of wear against the piston onn each side of? the line Y-Yj. Friction has always been one of the great di-lliculties with rotary engines-'and oftentimes when friction has been overcome or reduced: certain construction, the result' hasbeenwthat the piston notl bear against the wall of the pistonchamber'sufhciently tightly as to prevent loss of power. In actual-practice, my construction prevents anyl luy-.passing of the fluid, either thelluid that is being compressed", vor the" propelling fluid?, past the'no'se of the piston, while at the same time it does away with untdu'e'pressure of the free end ot the piston against` the wall' of the piston chamber.' 0i course, itfwilllbe' understood that beyondy 900 R.: P. 'M., the

Vcounterweigl-it or mechanical balance willbe usedto counteract the; centritugalforce in all! cases.. lti will also 'be understood that the relationfou the vcounte'rweigh-t and 'the' piston? should be suchfthat in case the 'springshould break, the pis-ton under centrifugal `force Will!- close against the periphery ofthe casingso f as torprevent any loss of' power, but the comite erweight acts to redu'ce this-excessivebearing' on the free end of the pistonl against thel cas-gy ing toY they minimufrn.`

'sof' Thus thelfplston will not vcreate frictional resistance to. its own travellvwi-ththe travel'ofV the rotor andtl'lepijston and the wall of the' casing will 'not wear' unduly. r

v In' the claims, I havereferredf to thework-` K- ing face of the' piston.` The working'f'ace of p the pistonisftheadyance face in the compressor, that is, the face contront-ingv the resist ance offered by the-compression of thefga's, l

while inl the motor,v the'working'faee is that l face which receivesthe force of' the expand'- ing charge or, in other Words, it is the rear face of the piston. I I

I claim i therefor, a hollow pistonpivotedo'n'the; rotor and urged outward toward the casing, the rotor havinga recess within which the piston operates, the piston having a wallI constitu't ingthe working face ofthe piston anda wall f constitutihgthereverse face thereof, the last 1. A structure ineludingarotorandcasing i named wall bearingagaihst the 'peripheral face ofthel cylinder and' having transversely spaced apertures therethroughwhereby the pressure within the-"hollow pistonv and'fsaid recess *may* 4be;eq-ualize'd with the pressure beftween the rotor andiv the casingfthe-casing maV havin-gia charge inlet aperture which tliepis;k

ton passes-'ina revolution ofthe rotor,v the inlet aperture being less in vwidth than-'the' dis# tancel transversely of the piston betweenl the equalizin'gI apertures in the .piston the material on eachside ofisa'id inlet aperture closing said equalizing apertures asthe piston passes't'heinlet. Y Y I f 2'. A rotary engine including yacasing, a

rotorthereih, therotor'having approximately segmental Vrecesses in its periphery, approXiL Vmately segmental-pistons, swingingly mount# ed inthe corresponding recesses-whereby' the pistons may swing*I outward against the wa-ll ofthe casing, each'. piston-having' a'v conveXly curvedl working facek concentric7 tor the* pivmember' carried'onthe "walflof .each recess and l bearing'v against' the curved' working face ot the corresponding-piston, the piston hav'- inga port leadingflrom'theperipheral'fa'ce of the-piston into said recess, the'piston having otal'l axis of the piston',y anda iixedrsealing a nose forming a continuation of the peripheral face of the piston and extending beyond said working face, said nose being of such length that a line disposed at an angle of approximately 221/2 degrees to a radius eX- tending through the axis of the motor and the pivotal axis of the piston will intersect the v face of the sealing member and the extremity sali of said nose when the pistonV is ullyopen and that a plane at right angles to said radius will intersect said 221/2 degree line half way be tween the extremity'of the nose and the adjacent corner of the sealing member, when the piston is fully open whereby there will be an equal pressure receiving area on each side of said plane in all positions of the piston.

In testimony whereof I hereunto ax. my Y signature.l y

RALPH .LMEYER 

